Beginner

Suited for a wide range of uses, Level 1 Beginner telescopes are simple to operate and set up. Some initial assembly may be required. Very good optical and mechanical quality. Great for families, young people, and folks who don't want to mess with equipment but just want to take a look. Any of these scopes will show you countless lunar craters, Saturn's rings and a myriad of star clusters and nebulas! Referring to the manual is recommended.

You don't have to be familiar with constellations and you certainly don't need a star chart to locate and observe thousands of celestial objects with the smart StarSeeker II 130mm GoTo Reflector telescope. Thanks to its computerized GoTo system featuring ingenious SkyAlign alignment technology, the StarSeeker II 130mm GoTo reflector is easy for anyone to use. Once aligned, the StarSeeker II 130mm will automatically locate and track any of over 4,000 celestial objects in its computerized GoTo database. With the Orion StarSeeker II 130mm reflector telescope, you'll be able to find interesting objects to observe on every clear night.

This high-tech, yet easy-to-use GoTo reflector telescope will turn even the novice stargazer into an instant astronomer. Even if you do not know the name of a single star in the sky, it's easy to align the StarSeeker II 130 in minutes. All you have to do is enter basic information like the date, time, and your location into the hand controller, then simply use the hand controller buttons to point the telescope to any three bright stars in the sky. Since SkyAlign requires no knowledge of the night sky, it is not necessary to hassle with star charts to determine the specific names of alignment stars. Once aligned, the Orion StarSeeker II 130mm reflector is ready to start finding and tracking any of the celestial curiosities in its 4,000+ object database.

The StarSeeker II 130 GoTo reflector telescope is a perfect combination of power and portability. If you are new to astronomy, the StarSeeker II 130mm should be on your short list of candidate telescopes to get started with, since it's capable of providing beautiful views on every clear evening and is so easy to use. Beginners will especially appreciate the StarSeeker II's built-in Sky Tour feature, which commands the StarSeeker II 130mm to find the most interesting objects in the sky and automatically aims the telescope at each one. Both seasoned stargazers and "newbies" will love the comprehensive database of over 4,000 celestial objects, including customized lists of all the best deep-sky objects, bright double-stars, and variable stars to explore. Regardless of your previous astronomy experience, the Orion StarSeeker II 130mm GoTo reflector telescope will unfold all the wonders of the universe for you and your family.

With its 130mm-aperture (5.1") short focal length parabolic mirror, the StarSeeker II 130mm GoTo reflector provides a wide field of view and bright images of night sky objects. Friends and family will enjoy probing intriguing star clusters and cloudy nebulas, as well as brighter galaxies on especially clear evenings. The Orion StarSeeker II 130mm GoTo telescope will provide stunning views of the Moon's cratered surface, and will also provide great views of bright planets such as Saturn with its beautiful rings and giant Jupiter with its cloud band "stripes" and dancing moons.

The included GoTo altazimuth mount is solidly constructed and features a dovetail attachment saddle which makes it easy to attach and remove the 130mm reflector optical tube without tools. What's more, the dovetail attachment saddle allows you to use the GoTo altazimuth mount with other telescope tubes equipped with a dovetail mounting plate.

The StarSeeker II 130mm reflector includes a thorough assortment of useful accessories including an illuminated GoTo hand controller, smooth-adjusting 2" rack-and-pinion focuser for use with wide-field 2" telescope eyepieces (sold separately), and an Orion EZ Finder II reflex sight to aid in centering initial alignment stars. Two 1.25" Kellner eyepieces are also included for two magnification options right out of the box! The included 25mm telescope eyepiece provides 26x magnification in the StarSeeker II 130, while the 10mm Kellner eyepiece yields 65x power for closer looks. A handy accessory tray attaches directly to the stable, adjustable-height tripod so you can keep all your eyepieces ready for observing action.

Weighing just 17 lbs. fully assembled, the Orion StarSeeker II 130mm GoTo reflector is a conveniently portable telescope easy to take along just about anywhere. Add some celestial adventures to your next big family campout, or wow your friends at their next dinner party by showing them the night sky as they've never seen before.

Limited Warranty against defects in materials or workmanship for two years from date of purchase. This warranty is for the benefit of the original retail purchaser only. For complete warranty details contact us at 800-676-1343.

Warning

Please note this product was not designed or intended by the manufacturer for use by a child 12 years of age or younger.

User level

Level 1 Beginner - Suited for a wide range of uses, these telescopes are simple to operate and set up. Some initial assembly may be required. Very good optical and mechanical quality. Great for families, young people, and folks who don't want to mess with equipment but just want to take a look. Any of these scopes will show you countless lunar craters, Saturn's rings and a myriad of star clusters and nebulas! Referring to the manual is recommended.

Level 2 Intermediate - These scopes offer higher performance and more advanced features than Level 1: Beginner models. They typically take a bit longer to learn and need some set-up or adjustments. But anyone with the slightest technical bent will have no problem getting familiar with these models. Referring to the manual is recommended.

Level 3 Advanced - These scopes provide the best performance but may require more skill to master and appreciate. They have exceptionally fine optics and mechanics. Some are easy to use but are but on the large or heavy side. Some are intended for specialized uses. These scopes will appeal to the more technically inclined. Referring to the manual is highly recommended.

Level 4 Expert - Expert telescopes offer uncompromising optical and mechanical quality for the most demanding amateur astronomer. They may be technically involved or designed for specialized use, such as astrophotography or detailed deep sky observation. They carry a premium price, but are designed to provide the ultimate performance in the field. Referring to the manual is highly recommended.

Optical design

Reflector telescopes use a pair of large and small mirrors to direct incoming light to the eyepiece.
Refractor telescopes refract, or "bend" incoming light to a focus by means of an objective lens.
Cassegrain telescopes, such as Maksutov-Cassegrains, "fold" incoming light using two mirrors and a front "corrector" lens.

Optical diameter

For telescopes, the optical diameter (also known as aperture) is the size of a telescope's main light-collecting lens or primary mirror, measured in millimeters or inches. Telescopes with larger optical diameters collect more light, which leads to an increase in brightness and image resolution compared to smaller instruments.

For binoculars, the optical diameter (also known as objective lens diameter) is the size of each of the front-facing objective lenses of a binocular measured in millimeters. Binoculars with larger objective lenses collect more light, which increases image resolution and brightness. Binoculars with larger objective lenses are recommended for low light situations, and binoculars with at least 50mm or larger objective lenses are recommended for pleasing astronomical observations at night.

Focal length

The distance from the center of a curved mirror or lens at which parallel light rays converge to a single point. The focal length is an inherent specification of a mirror or lens and is one of the factors in determining resultant magnification for a telescope (along with the focal length of the eyepiece being used).

Focal ratio

The focal ratio of an optical system is the ratio of a telescope's focal length to its aperture. Short focal ratios (f/5, f/4.5) produce wide fields of view and small image scales, while long focal lengths produce narrower fields of views and larger image scales.

Optics type

Newtonian reflectors will have either a spherical shaped mirror, which is less expensive to produce, or a higher quality parabola, which does not result in spherical aberration. Cassegrain telescopes routinely use spheres in addition to other lenses in the optical path to correct for residual spherical aberration.
Refractors use a series of lenses to provide a clear image. Designs range from a standard air-spaced doublet (two lenses in a row) to exotic designs such as oil-spaced triplets and 4-element multi group lenses.

Glass material

Refractors use glass lenses to focus the light, and the glass material plays an important role in the quality of the resulting image. Standard achromatic refractors routinely use Crown and Flint for the two elements, but more expensive apochromatic refractors can use ED (extra low dispersion) glass for one or more of the lenses. Reflector mirrors are made from glass with different levels of thermal expansion. Standard mirrors are made from material such as Soda-Lime Plate glass and BK-7 glass. Glass with Pyrex or other low thermal expansion material will not change shape as dramatically during the cool-down period, resulting in more stable images during this period.

Resolving power

The theoretical resolving power of a telescope can be calculated with the following formula: Resolving power (in arc seconds) = 4.56 divided by aperture of telescope (in inches). In metric units, this is: Resolving power (in arc seconds) = 116 divided by aperture of telescope (in millimeters). Note that the formula is independent of the telescope type or model, and is based only upon the aperture of the telescope. So the larger the telescope's aperture, the more it is capable of resolving. This is important to keep in mind when observing astronomical objects which require high resolution for best viewing, such as planets and double stars. However, it is usually atmospheric seeing conditions (not the telescope) which limits the actual resolving power on a given night; rarely is resolution less than one arc-second possible from even the best viewing locations on Earth.

Lowest useful magnification

Lowest useful magnification is the power at which the exit pupil becomes 7mm in diameter. Powers below this can still be reached with the telescope to give wider fields of view, but the image no longer becomes brighter at a lower power. This is due to the fact that the exit pupil of the telescope (the beam of light exiting the eyepiece) is now larger than the average person's dark adapted pupil, and no more light can fit into the eye.

Highest useful magnification

The highest practical limit is different from the often used "highest theoretical magnification" specification. The "theoretical" limit generally is 50x the aperture of the scope in inches (2x the aperture in mm). So for example, an 80mm refractor is capable of 160x, and a 10" telescope is theoretically capable of 500x magnification.
But after approximately 300x, theory breaks down and real world problems take over. The atmosphere above us is constantly in motion, and it will distort the image seen through the telescope. This effect may not be noticeable at lower powers, but at higher powers the atmosphere will dramatically blur the object, reducing the quality of the image. On a good night (a night where the air above is steady and the stars aren't twinkling), the practical upper limit of a large telescope is 300x, even thought the theoretical limit may be much higher. This doesn't mean the scope will never be able to reach those higher "theoretical" powers - there will be that rare night where the atmosphere is perfectly still and the scope can be pushed past it's practical limit, but those nights will be few and far between.

Astro-imaging capability

The astro-photographic capability of the telescope is based on the style, stability, and accuracy of the mount and tripod. Telescopes on either very lightweight mounts or non tracking mounts (such as Dobsonians) are capable of only very short exposures such as lunar photographs. If a motor drive is attached to an equatorial mount, even a small lightweight mount is capable of capturing some planetary detail. Larger EQ mounts that utilize very precise tracking and excellent stability are capable of longer exposure deep-sky photography.

Computerized compatibility

Some mounts are compatible with a motorized Go-To system for fully automated computer finding of objects in the night sky. Others mounts are compatible with computer finding systems which require the user to manually move the mount to the object's position as indicated by the computer finder.

Warranty

This warranty gives you specific legal rights. It is not intended to remove or restrict your other legal rights under applicable local consumer law; your state or national statutory consumer rights governing the sale of consumer goods remain fully applicable.

Orders received by 1pm Eastern Time for in-stock items ship the same business day. Orders received after 1pm will ship the next business day. When an item is not in-stock we will ship it as soon as it becomes available. Typically in-stock items will ship first and backordered items will follow as soon as they are available. You have the option in check out to request that your order ship complete, if you'd prefer.

A per-item shipping charge (in addition to the standard shipping and handling charge) applies to this product due to its size and weight. This charge varies based on the shipping method.

The Orion Expanse eyepieces offer a wide 66° field of view and superior optical performance at a very affordable price. Great eye relief on all models ensures eyeglass wearers can view the entire field. All eyepiece lens elements are fully coated.

Stratus eyepieces deliver a wide 68° field of view which allows you to see much more than a typical 52° Plossl. The 8-element optics give you sharp, high contrast images across the field. The generous eye relief makes viewing comfortable for all.

At Orion, we are committed to sharing our knowledge and passion for astronomy and astrophotography with the amateur astronomy community. Visit the Orion Community Center for in-depth information on telescopes, binoculars, and astrophotography. You can find astrophotography "how to" tips and share your best astronomy pictures here. Submit astronomy articles, events, and reviews, and even become a featured Orion customer!